So it is with children who learn to read fluently and well: They begin to take flight into whole new worlds as effortlessly as young birds take to the sky. —William James

When one thinks of summer, one remembers days of swimming, hiking, camping, and vacationing. Can anyone find the time to read? Thirty-four students at Elkin Elementary School did just that and spent some of their summer vacation with a lot of great books.

These students participated in the Appalachian State University Mountaineer Reading Program. This is a collaborative program between Appalachian Athletics and the Reich College of Education. The program is in its eighth year and reaches out to students in grades first through eighth in public schools in Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Watauga, Wilkes and Elkin City.

This summer students read books on their grade level and kept a log of their reading. These were turned in at the beginning of school. The top three readers in each grade will receive tickets to a home 2013-2014 ASU men’s or women’s basketball game. All students who completed the program will receive a poster.

Ali Well’s class had the highest percentage of kids who participated and they will receive a pizza party. The media center will receive $300 to purchase more books for the students. This year the grand prize winners at Elkin Elementary School were Hollyann Caudle (first grade) and Harper Lee Libbert (sixth grade). They will each receive three tickets to the ASU home football game on Nov. 2, a tailgate party, and recognition on the 50 yard line during halftime of the ball game.

The 34 students who participated this summer collectively read a total of 1,403 books. Practice makes perfect and kids who read often will be better readers during their school years and for the rest of their lives.

Grade level winners are:

First — Hollyann Caudle, Laken Adams, Jada Bright, Joshua Couch

Second — Kaitlyn Luster, Abby Thomas, Lyelie Klatt

Third — Raven Poindexter, Emma Grace Martin, Matthew Beshears

Fifth — J’Lynn Poplin, Cameron Shaw, Madeline Morphis

Sixth — Harper Lee Libbert

Reading is important, because if you can read, you can learn anything about everything and everything about anything. —Tomie dePaola

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